


Of Flights; the Frantic and the Friendly

by ZombieZombie



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Bernadetta deserves more attention, Dangerous Bow and Arrow Shots, F/F, Fluff, Improper Tree Climbing, Just gals being pals, Petra deserves more A Supports with Girls, Post-Timeskip (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), implied animal death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-14
Updated: 2019-08-14
Packaged: 2020-08-23 11:10:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20241883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZombieZombie/pseuds/ZombieZombie
Summary: Petra is a skilled and capable woman, whose feats with both bow and blade are renowned and feared. A royal from the land of Brigid, she carries the burdens of her people on her back, trying her damnedest to secure a bright future for her country. Not a night goes by where she thinks of the duties that fall upon her, and many question just how well she can handle the stress.Bernadetta, however, is wondering how she can handle the stress Petra gives her.





	Of Flights; the Frantic and the Friendly

“Petraaaa! Get down from there!”

Bernadetta, to the untrained eye, was screaming at a tree as if it had made fun of her artwork, hair style, and general way of living. However, the anxious bear was decidedly irate towards a tropical bird in the tree in front of her. Much to Bernadetta’s chagrin, Petra was fairly amused over the smaller woman’s reaction, cracking a smile and laughing from above. This, of course, serves only as further irritation for Bernie, as she groans out in agitation.

“Don’t laugh about this,” she starts, crossing her arms, “it’s dangerous up there! What if you slide and fall out of the tree? You could get seriously hurt! Or die! How will I explain to Edelgard that you fell out of a tree and died?! Just before we go and march towards Fhirdiad?!?”

To that response, Petra dismisses her friend’s ramble with a wave of her hand.

“You are in my homeland, and helped secure my Grandfather’s aid to the Empire. It is my duty to treat you to all that the kingdom of Brigid has to offer. This is no accepting your demands!” With that response, she continues her ascent up into the tree, to gather her objective that rests towards the top of the tree. Being a tropical island nation, Brigid is home to many different trees, flowers, and plants that couldn’t exist in the harsher climates of Fóldan. Despite their imports, not many but the most noble of houses could experience the fruits of Brigid’s labor.

Summer doesn’t bring much, but it does bring the rain. And when the rain comes, the first mangoes.

Petra doesn’t just want any mangoes, however. She wants her friend to experience the best mango possible, fresh and ripe from the tree, and only she knows how to get them. If it means climbing a tree, then she is going to climb a tree. Even if a thunderstorm where to roll in, with enemy soldiers barking at the gates, she WILL get this treat. Much to Bernadetta’s chagrin benefit and chagrin, Petra is not one to shy away from any sort of challenge.

It’s not long, however, until Petra spots a new, more interesting challenge ahead of her. As she climbs, she notices rustling in the underbrush that fills the forest. Bernadetta, too compromised by her friend’s antics, fails to notice what looks like a group of pheasants roaming and foraging for food. Mother nature seems to find the stressed bear’s whines to be fairly toothless, as the pheasants continue to browse relatively undisturbed by her presence. After all, Bernie barely survived an attack by a wild hare, surely a pheasant would outclass her!

Petra was the hunter to fear, however, as she silently goes for her bow from it’s sling shortly after noticing the feathered fouls. Locking her place on the tree tightly with her legs, she pulls out an arrow, knocking it into place as she draws the string taut. Bernie, all the while, went from panicked to frozen in fear, all eyes focusing on her friend as she took aim at… something. Was there a threat nearby? Did they not scare off all of the Faerghus soldiers off? Is there a wild cat, or puma, waiting to strike at a moment’s notice? As the hunter locked in the shot, Bernie knocked her knees together, trying her best to suppress what was surely her death rattle.

The arrow flies, and feathers soon fly with it. The squawking of surprised game birds was overshadowed by a human screech, as the purple haired woman dives for cover under the mango tree. Before even she knew it, her own bow was drawn and ready to fire, like a hair trigger ready to fire. Up above, however, all tension was quickly released, as Petra laughs, and laughs at the situation that unfolded around her. 

“I don’t remember birds making a noise like that, how odd! It’s just simple hunting, nothing to worry about. Like shooting stalks of vegetables!” Slinging her bow once again, Petra leans up into the higher reaches of the tree to pluck yellow-ish green fruits, putting whatever she can’t carry into a satchel on her side. As she slid down the tree, she would be greeted by a sulking Bernadetta, cheeks puffed and arms crossed. All Petra could do is show off the fruits of her labor with a bright smile. It only slightly worked.

“I didn’t know what was going on!” She squalled, arms flying downward as if to put more force into her complaint, “It could’ve been anything out here! Maybe there was someone stalking us! Or, or some wild beast who wanted to make a meal out of me! That would be such a way to go, too! Bernadetta, Sniper for the Empire, slain by a man sized house cat! Everyone would be laughing at me at my funeral! What was I supposed to do, Petra, what was I supposed to do!”

The only response she gets is a frown and a sigh, as she goes to retrieve her fallen prey. The idea that Petra and Bernadetta could’ve had some time to enjoy Brigid’s lush forests and get away from the stress and worry of war was really nice! But, it still has its own unique stressors and worries, it seems. It’s incredibly easy to forget just how sheltered someone could be, especially in Fóldan, where even the idea of walking around in the open was an invitation for disaster. Perhaps that is just how people in Fóldan live. It sounds absolutely miserable.

“Ah,” Petra remarks, as she makes a turn back towards camp, “I apologize… but let’s get moving before evening comes. It gets darker quicker in the forest, do not want to get lost in here without light.” Bernie doesn’t quite accept the apology, but does accept that she doesn’t want to get lost in the jungle forever. With a huff, she picks up the pace and speeds up to catch her friend and guide. Exploring was so much better in novels than it ever was in person.

* * *

The conversation back towards home was small and sparse, and very little tried to change the silence that fell before the two of them. It was entirely possible that they had exerted all of their energy earlier, from excursions and excessive worrying, but why is there still such tension between these two women? The silence continued, and their destination grew in front of them. Brigid was a small island, so it wasn’t too unusual for one of their bigger ports to also be their capital city. It’s familiar territory called out to both of them, with their home frigate not too far away…

“Wait,” Petra stopped in her tracks, before grabbing Bernadetta by the wrist. It caught Bernie by surprise, and almost fell straight forward if it wasn’t for Petra being such a solid anchor. Pushing her purple hair back, stammering a confused ‘W-what?’, Petra cracks a small smile.

“We are close enough to be safe, I say we should camp nearby, and extend our outing out. No one will worry, and what’s better than camping out with a friend in such a beautiful island? The adventure doesn’t have to end here and now!”

“A-ah,” Bernie stammered, “wait, wait, don’t… what if Edelgar- Our Majesty needs us? Surely, surely we should, show up and make ourselves known! They might think that something went wrong! They’ll know if they don’t see me in the morning!”

“Bernie…” she started as she slowed down, turning to look at the purple haired woman, “nothing bad is going to happen tonight. I wish to spend more time with you, before we go back to war time. We can stay by the ocean, set up a fire, and have dinner. It’ll be nice and quiet, and you prefer that, yes?”

It wasn’t often that Bernadetta felt flat out guilty. Perhaps she’d fluster, say some inane remarks, but just as quickly as it comes, it fades. But seeing the frown on Petra’s face pulls some strings in her heart, like she plucked a tail feather from a bird, or stepped on a cat’s tail. It was devastating, and she had no idea how to make up for it! In a panic, she pulls on Petra’s arm, and holds it in both hands, pulling it down to get the taller woman to eye level!

“I’m sorry! I would love to! I won’t run away, I promise, lead the way!”

Silence falls over the two of them.

As Bernie has more time to think over her words, Petra’s eyes start to sparkle. As Bernie’s face starts to burn bright red, Petra’s smile grows wider. Before anyone could say anything more, Petra grips onto the other’s hands and starts running to the shoreline. Maybe it was something about her shoes, or the way she pushes herself, but keeping up with the excited Brigid noble was incredibly difficult! If it wasn’t for the forgiving sand, Bernadetta would’ve ended face down on the ground.

“Sit!”

Petra lets go of her friend, and Bernie is quick to land on the sands below to catch her breath. Whatever happened next was an absolute blur, as it felt like it took the younger woman a handful of minutes to get a fire pit roaring, a spit to roast the game birds, and her camping kit ready for both of them to dig in. Before she could even ask to help her friend, a mango is shoved right into her hands, while Petra tends to the cooking foul. 

“Eat! Think of this as replenishment for a long day of hiking and fighting! Good reward for good work!” 

The orange-red fruit merely stares back at Bernadetta, who is absolutely befuddled at how to tackle this situation. Does she just… bite it? It’s orange like oranges, and oranges have a skin on them, but it feels more like… a peach? She pulls out her field knife, and simply cuts a thick slice of mango off. Thin skin, no seeds, and just… orange fruit? She’s never seen anything like this before, and placing her trust in Petra, she tosses the slice into her mouth.

She was almost ready to spit it out when she tasted the bitter peel, but the incredible sweetness soon wins her back. Before she knew it, she was going after it like she would an apple (after peeling off the skin though, yuck).Even if she was busy taking care of the main meal for the night, seeing Bernie bounce back from anxiety and stress to enjoying herself was rewarding beyond measure. Well, until Bernie found out about mango seeds the hard way, then it was hilarious beyond measure. Any measure of pouting she received was quickly subsided when another mango was tossed her way.

Before they knew it, they were sitting beside the campfire, watching how the stars and moon were reflected on the gentle ocean waves. It was nothing quite like they saw before, especially for poor landlocked Bernie. Being able to forget about all the troubles war brings, the bitter anxiety of fighting enemies and friends alike, was something the pair never knew they needed so badly. Tossing down her utensils, Bernadetta lets out a small yawn, and lays down flat on the sand.

“It’s been so long since I went camping, and it’s been even longer since… well, I enjoyed camping. Especially with someone else.” She remarked openly, which drew Petra’s attention from the ocean view.

“Well, we should go out more then. Brigid will always have a room for you, as long as we are friends. I find incredible difficulty in seeing us not be friends.” A harmless comment, a friendly smile, and a relaxed air is all that Petra can give her, after all. If she chooses to take it, well, then all the better, right? Bernie thinks about this for a moment, before sitting herself back up.

In an instant, Petra was grabbed into a hug, and squeezed with all of the might a sniper like Bernie had. Which was a lot, surprisingly, for someone with a poor brawl skill.

“Petra, you’re being too nice to me!” She whined, to the point of having small tears bead in her eyes. “I would come back, of course, just to repay you for all you’ve done! You’ve put up with my nonsense, taught me how to fire properly, and… you never complained! Ever! Even when I was the most useless, you just-”

“Bernadetta, haha, please,” Petra started, trying her best not to laugh and offend, “there is nothing to payback for! It’s simply what I want to do! Nothing has a motive, it is what I want to do, and what I want to do is be here and help you have a good time. There is no reward other than you enjoying life. Not being cooped up and scared! You will have no fear, not in Brigid. Not while I’m still standing.”

“It is the duty of a warrior, and the duty of the Queen of Brigid!” It’s almost comical with how much certainty and confidence she speaks, and Bernadetta can’t help but laugh in reply. Of course, she also retreats a bit before laughing, too, because maybe she shouldn’t overstay her welcome with a hug. Might as well keep the future Queen in the best graces, right? As soon as she lets go, Petra gets up and offers a hand.

“Come, let’s head to the ship. Tide will change soon, and sleeping in the sand is a good way to wake up with birds in your face. Or worse, attacked by ferocious band of crabs. Terrible!”

Bernie is quick to laugh off the joke, and even quicker to take her hand because, actually, a band of crabs coming over to ruin her day is not something she is very interested in. She even double checks to make sure she wasn’t lying on one of their homes. Crabs make their home in the sand, right? Or do they go into the ocean at night? Her brow furrows gently, before coming back down to reality, holding Petra’s hand.

“Yeah, let’s get moving!” She states, as they extinguish the fire and take their equipment with them.

“... Crabs don’t, travel in packs, right?”


End file.
